Wednesday 20 June 2007

More thoughts on reality TV – Connection not equal to Communication!


I know, I know! – Two consecutive posts about reality TV. I am obviously ill ;-) I was listening to a podcast discussion earlier today from wiredparish.com and one of the contributors was talking about the whole Reality TV phenomenon and how it has become so central to many peoples lives. In exploring Society’s addiction to the genre he observed that those being observed in these shows are being forced to experience Community without the distractions of the increasingly inter-connected world from which they are temporarily removed. Deprived of phones, internet and TV they have no option but to speak to one another and engage with one another face to face in real time and with no electronic gateway required. In doing so they rediscover an authentic experience of Community which ironically for all our inter-connectedness is a rare and diminishing reality. So it seems that what motivates us to watch these bizarre phenomena is envy – NOT envy of celebrity – but envy of an experience of intimate interdependent Community.

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